TELL ME A STORY - the pay what you can sale until 12/1/12

...pay what you can until December 1, 2012

Here’s the deal:

I'm having a sale.
All editioned prints are for sale at any price you're willing to
pay. You just have to tell me a story
about why you can't afford the retail price.
Or just tell me a really really good story and make me an offer, and
I'll probably accept it. All images are
available on my website (however some editions are sold out in certain
sizes). The available sizes are 10x10", 12x12", 20x20", 30x30", 36x36" and 48x48". It gets better because Keith at Zero Station
has offered 25% off framing on work 36" and smaller to go along with the
sale!

Have ADD and can't read this long post? I get it. Here are
basic instructions on what to do:

Tell me the image and size you would like. Tell me your story. Send it via email or
snail snail mail to the address below.
Be sure to include your contact information and I'll get back to you
with the image's availability and whether or not I will accept your offer.

Good question. I will be accepting stories until December 1, 2012. I may extend it, I may not. I may run this sale annually, I may not.

Why are you having this sale?You're
important to me and I love a good
story. If you're on this list, you have
been a part of my life in someway or helped my career, so it's my turn to give
back. I am getting close to the half way
mark of photographing all of my friends on Facebook (626 when I came up with
the idea). They're all over the world which means I need to raise a
considerable amount of money for film and travel.

This seems crazy! Are you telling me I can get a $3000 print for $500?
Yes! It’s true.

Wow, this is great. I’d like to stock up for wedding presents, birthday presents, Christmas, etc. Is that all right? Can I tell my friends about your sale?

I admire your forward thinking and art makes wonderful
gifts. Much better than a Target
registry. A friend of yours is a friend
of mine. Have them send me a story with
your name as the referrer. Maybe I'll
even give you something special.

I want to support this project but I have no idea what to offer without insulting you, can you give me some guidance?
Sure! A list of my retail prices are on my website. I can tell you it costs me about $1 a square inch to make a print, so that is a place to start. However, I will accept any offer that is within your budget. I realize all to well how tuff these times are.

My husband and I are both doctors and have tons of money. We don’t need a discount (although we love to buy art cheap at auctions) but this project seems so compelling, we’re happy to pay retail. This email was a nice reminder of how much we love your work. Can we pay with a credit card or do you prefer a check?

Thank you so much for your honesty! I prefer a check, you can send it to the
above address or I can e-mail you a link to my paypal account and you can pay
via credit card. If you want to skip the buying all together, you can make a
tax deductible donation.

Are you really my friend? is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions for the purposes of Are you really my friend? must be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

I’d like to support this but don’t have time to write anything and I just want to click a button but don’t want to pay retail, what should I do?
I have created a big cartel store for people like you. It’s quick and easy and full of ARYMF merchandise, but the store doesn’t have everything available on my website.

Editioned prints are obviously limited, which means I should act fast. But I’m also nervous that you won’t like my story, do you accept non cash bribes to sweeten the deal?
Yes, its true you should act fast! And yes, I do accept bribes. Especially of the food and booze variety. However, your art or handmade anything works well too.

Can you give me an idea of a story that you are likely to accept?
Of course. I will tell you I am putting more weight on longer stories and ones that are hand written. Who doesn’t love a letter in the mail?

Dear Tanja, My wife and I met at one of your openings 10 years ago, we’ve never been able to afford any of your work, but the invitation from the show still hangs on our fridge. I’d love to get a 36x36” of Varkala, India for my wife’s 40th birthday. I only have $500. Thanks for considering, Joe in Georgia. SOLD!

Dear Tanja, I’m a photo dealer and would like to buy out an entire 48” edition of one of your new images. I’ll give you $20, 000. Peace, Ms. Photo dealer OK.

Dear Tanja, We’ve been friends for along time but haven’t seen each other in ages. I really like your work … I’m going to tell you the story of how we met in kindergarten. Love, Your playground bestie This sounds very interesting, please do tell. Can’t wait to see you again and photograph your family.

Dear Tanja, I’m a collector and want to buy the entire body of work from Israel. I’d like to pay you 25% of retail, so I can donate it to MOMA for a big tax write-off. Seems like a win win for both of us. Sincerely, Mr. Collector Man Yes, it does seem like a win win. Tell you what, you fedex me a check by the end of the week and its a done deal.

Dear Tanja, I’m a curator at a Contemporary Art Museum. Our funding has been slashed this year but we’d love to buy a few pieces. This seems like the perfect opportunity. Would you consider selling us 5 30x30 portraits for our collection? I really think they work best when shown in groups. We’re having a show of recently acquired work at the beginning of the summer, so I’d love to get them ASAP. Also, I’d love to arrange a studio visit with you because I’m quite intrigued by this FB project. It seems very relevant. Talk to you soon, Ms. Curator Lady Yes, of course! I love the work you do with the museum and am happy to support it. E-mail about a studio visit, and thanks for helping me help you.

Hi T, It’s your Ma. Do I really have to tell you a story? xxoo, Ma Yes, Ma, you do.